“Untouchable: The Strange Life and Tragic Death of Michael Jackson” is a biography of the ‘King of Pop’ with unprecedented insight. Acclaimed journalist Randall Sullivan’s latest work paints an in-depth portrait of Michael Jackson sourced from previously  inaccessible material – access to those who were closest to Jackson in life and in business.

Sullivan’s biography delves into Jackson’s mysterious final years and scandals from his past, in what the Los Angeles Times calls the “first deep-dive narrative” on the star’s life and death. “Untouchable” offers a more significant, evaluative look at Jackson’s childhood abuse, pedophilia allegations, personal relationships, and professional decisions.

Finally, Jackson’s famous mask has been partially lifted.

Randall Sullivan, author of Untouchable: The Strange Life and Tragic Death of Michael Jackson (Grove Press); contributing editor to both Rolling Stone and Men's Journal

Ronald Reagan UCLA (University of California Los Angeles) Medical Center is seen on October 9, 2008 in Los Angeles, California. Credit: David McNew/Getty Images

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious hospitals in the United States. The medical center ranked in the top five in U.S. News and World Report’s 2012-2013 national Best Hospitals ranking, but more recently one healthcare quality rating group gave UCLA an F in patient safety.

Leapfrog, a nonprofit group focused on healthcare quality, announced this week that the hospital gets a failing grade when it comes to preventing medical errors, patient infections and deaths. Leapfrog withheld issuing a grade to UCLA in June in order to give the hospital and other low-performers time to improve.

Officials at UCLA disputed the failing grade and said one patient death in 2010 unfairly lowered its grade from a C to an F under Leapfrog’s standards.

How could a widely respected hospital even come close to failing on patient safety? Are there serious safety problems at UCLA Medical Center or has Leapfrog exaggerated a insignificant statistic?

Leapfrog Group Scoring Methodology

Leah Binder, CEO of Leapfrog Group, a hospital ratings organization based in Washington, D.C.

Ms. Jan Emerson-Shea, Vice President of External Relations, California Hospital Association

A Powerball lottery ticket is seen in a convenience store in Washington on November 26, 2012. The previous drawing resulted in no winner, setting up for the record setting prize when numbers will be drawn on Wednesday. Tickets are sold in 42 US states, Washington, DC, and the US Virgin Islands. Credit: SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images

Tonight’s Powerball drawing could make some lucky winner very happy – maybe.  

The national lottery has gone 16 weeks without a winner, increasing the jackpot to a cool half billion plus,  the most it’s ever been and second only to last April’s $656 million MegaMillions prize. Maybe you’re one of those dashing off to the corner liquor store for a ticket, or setting up an uneasy alliance with co-workers to increase your chances.  

But it won’t help that much – the odds of winning now stand at about 1 in 175 million. As some have pointed out, you’re more likely to get hit by an asteroid.  And for those who have won in the past, the story doesn’t always end happily.

Squandered fortunes, lost friends, failed marriages and emotional distress have plagued past winners who weren’t able to handle the pressures of sudden, inconceivable wealth.  Winning office pools have turned ecstatic colleagues into bloodthirsty sharks, with ‘lottery lawyers’ eating up major portions of the profits in protracted legal squabbles.  

How would you spend the money if you won?  How would you stay grounded?  What would those millions mean to you, your family and your way of life?

GUEST:

Matt Sweeney, author of The Lottery Wars: Long Odds, Fast Money, and the Battle Over an American Institution.

British Prime Minister David Cameron gives a press conference at the EU Headquarters, on November 23, 2012 in Brussels, after a two-day European Union leaders summit called to agree a hotly-contested trillion-euro budget through 2020. EU Council President Herman Van Rompuy said today that an EU budget deal was within reach early next year, after a two-day summit collapsed without agreement. Credit: JOHN THYS/AFP/Getty Images

The European Union (EU) was established to unite the continent of Europe, but now the EU may be losing membership from one of the region’s most influential nations, The United Kingdom of Great Britain (UK).

Hostility toward the EU among the British is on the rise and some government officials, including UK Independence Party councilor Peter Reeve, are calling for the country to cut ties with the EU before the alliance transforms into a Soviet Union type regime. European leaders have recently proposed increasing the EU budget, which is funded by member states, but UK Prime Minister David Cameron of the Conservative Party has pushed back against this proposal, saying it would be “picking the pockets” of British taxpayers.

Moreover, with member state Greece still bogged down in economic turmoil, some insist that the EU is dragging the UK’s economy down with it. Others in the UK are concerned about the limits of the EU’s legal, judicial and health-and-safety regulations that trump British laws.

What is the underlying cause of tension between the EU and the UK? Is British policy different enough from the rest of Europe to warrant a withdrawal from the EU? How would British withdrawal from the EU impact the United States?

Nicholas Cull, professor of Public Diplomacy and Director of the Masters Program in Public Diplomacy, USC

Andrew Gumbel, is an LA-based British journalist who writes regularly for The Guardian and other publications; author, most recently, of “Oklahoma City: What The Investigation Missed -- And Why It Still Matters” (William Morrow)

“Untouchable: The Strange Life and Tragic Death of Michael Jackson” is a biography of the ‘King of Pop’ with unprecedented insight. Acclaimed journalist Randall Sullivan’s latest work paints an in-depth portrait of Michael Jackson sourced from previously  inaccessible material – access to those who were closest to Jackson in life and in business.

Sullivan’s biography delves into Jackson’s mysterious final years and scandals from his past, in what the Los Angeles Times calls the “first deep-dive narrative” on the star’s life and death. “Untouchable” offers a more significant, evaluative look at Jackson’s childhood abuse, pedophilia allegations, personal relationships, and professional decisions.

Finally, Jackson’s famous mask has been partially lifted.

Randall Sullivan, author of Untouchable: The Strange Life and Tragic Death of Michael Jackson (Grove Press); contributing editor to both Rolling Stone and Men's Journal

Medical staff of the Saint Franciscus hospital receives a flu and H1N1 shot in Rotterdam on November 12, 2009. Around 180.000 workers of the 98 Dutch hospitals will be offered swine flu vaccinations. More than 5,700 people have died worldwide since the virus was first discovered in April, most of them in the Americas region, according to the World Health Organisation. Credit: AFP/AFP/Getty Images

You’re hearing it everywhere: PSAs on TV and the radio. Maybe from your boss, too. It’s time to get a flu shot.

“Everyone who is at least 6 months of age should get a flu vaccine this season,” is the recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The vaccine doesn’t work for all flu viruses, but public health officials insist, the more people who get vaccination, the more protection we all have from catching a flu.

Even so, American workers who don’t often get sick may be tempted to skip the vaccination. Turns out, that’s true for a lot of people who work in hospitals, too. Some states and many more medical centers have responded by making the flu shot mandatory for health care workers.

Have you gotten your flu shot this year? Do you think it should be mandatory? And is there a difference between requiring health care workers to get it, and the average employee who isn’t out treating patients?

GUEST:  

Dr. Arthur (Art) Caplan, Director, Division of Medical Ethics at NYU’s Langone Medical Center

“The Fiddler on Pantico Run” is author Joe Mozingo’s quest to discover the origins of his father’s family, and the shocking discoveries he made along the way. After initially believing that Mozingo was a French or Basque name, a college professor suggested that it was most likely of African origins.

This came as a shock to the blue eyed, very Caucasian Mozingo, but spawned a search for his family’s origins. Eventually, Mozingo was able to trace his ancestry back to Edward Mozingo, an African slave brought to Jamestown in 1644, who eventually earned his freedom and married a white woman.

The discovery of Edward Mozingo, however, is only the beginning of the family history laid out in The Fiddler on Pantico Run. Joe Mozingo searches for Edward’s roots in Africa, but also traces how the family evolved in America from Edward’s initial mixed race marriage. Mozingo meets distant relatives all over the country, some white, some black, some somewhere in between, all with distinct family histories.

Some had become abolitionists during the Civil War period, while others had fought for the Confederacy and joined the KKK. To this day, some remained open about race, while others still harbored a blatantly racist worldview. Through all of these discoveries within his own family, Mozingo’s book paints a masterful portrait of America’s tenuous racial past, and complicated racial future.

Guest:

Joe Mozingo, author of “The Fiddler on Pantico Run: An African Warrior, His White Descendents, A Search For Family”

Coe Park is California's second-largest state park, spanning more than 87,000 acres. Credit: Melissa Block/NPR

When he retired last year at the age of 63, Major General Anthony L. Jackson, a highly decorated marine whose 36 years of service included stints with Operation Iraqi Freedom and numerous other command posts, headed for the hills - and the beaches, the woods.and mountains.  Jackson purchased an RV as a retirement gift for himself and his wife, and hit the road to explore California’s state parks.

Cut to a year later: Jackson has just been sworn in as director of California’s department of Parks and Recreation. The department has had a bumpy year, with its last director resigning in disgrace after officials were discovered to have hidden over $50 million of parks money in special funds.  Prior to that, dozens of parks went on the closure list due to lack of funds while private citizens rallied to save them.

The new director brings managerial experience, knowledge of renewable energy and environmental issues and a deep love and respect for the outdoors. Governor Jerry Brown said that under his leadership, “the stewardship of California’s beaches, forests, estuaries, dunes and wetlands is in good hands and that the confidence and trust of Californians in our Parks Department will be restored.”  But is that easier said than done?

How does Major General Jackson plan to rehabilitate the beleaguered department? Which parks are most in need of attention?

Major General Anthony L. Jackson, USMC (Ret.), newly appointed director of the California Department of Parks and Recreation

Israelis hold signs during a demonstration in support of the Palestinian UN statehood status bid, in the capital of Tel Aviv on November 29, 2012. Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas went to the United Nations assured of huge support for UN recognition of a state for his people in the face of strong US and Israeli opposition. Credit: DAVID BUIMOVITCH/AFP/Getty Images

Less than two weeks after a violent eight-day conflict between Hamas and Israel, the United Nations (UN) is set to approve recognition of Palestine’s status as a “non-member observer state.”  This is the second time that Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas has applied for the status upgrade from “observer entity” after his first attempt was impeded last year. The resolution is expected to garner the necessary majority vote of the 193 members of the UN General Assembly, but there are strong petitions on both sides of the motion.

Some countries, including the United States and Israel, oppose the upgrade and are concerned that the Palestinians will use their new status to join the International Criminal Court and try to prosecute Israel for alleged war crimes. France, Italy, and Spain have announced their endorsement of the resolution alongside many other European nations, including Greece, Belgium and Denmark.

While winning the status of “non-member observer” would constitute an important endorsement of legitimacy for Palestine’s claim to statehood, it would be mostly symbolic and would probably not change much on the ground in the Middle East.

Why is Abbas pursuing this? What are the potential benefits and drawbacks to upgrading Palestine’s status?

Barbara Plett, BBC United Nations Correspondent

A student on his way to school walks past a Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) school. A new report criticizes L.A. Unified for mishandling child abuse cases. Credit: ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images

A state audit released this morning evaluates the way school districts handle child abuse. The report highlights several concerns about LAUSD practices, it says that L.A. Unified frequently fails to follow state law in reporting procedures, and that their handling of child abuse in schools has often been slow and sub-par.

The report draws specific attention to money problems that may contribute to the mishandling of these cases – it is often faster and less costly to settle with an accused employee than to dismiss them. The report recommends that LAUSD follow state procedures for timely reporting, and that they institute stricter monitoring of alleged misconduct, including provisions to prevent an employee who was dismissed after report of a transgression from being hired in another school district.

How should LAUSD handle alleged misconduct by their employees? Do the results of the state audit concern you?

Tami Abdollah, KPCC education reporter

Boats in the annual Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade are lit with decorations as they move through through the night. Credit: David McNew/Getty Images

Larry and our talented trio of Orange County journalists riff on the latest news from the O.C.  African-American family victim of hate crimes in Yorba Linda...Newport Beach dock owners threaten to boycott Christmas boat parade......private eye tries to sting Costa Mesa councilman...Rev. Schuller loses his multi-million dollar claims against the Crystal Cathedral...this and more juicy news from the Big Orange.

Norberto Santana, Editor-in-Chief of the Voice of OC, a non-profit investigative news agency that covers Orange County government and politics

Julie Gallego,  government & politics editor, Orange County Register

Ben Bergman, KPCC’s Orange County reporter

Copies of Britain's News of the World newspaper. Credit: Adrian Dennis/AFP/Getty Images

A new report from the head of a major inquiry into British media standards suggested that the British press should institute an independent regulator. The report is a response to a history of questionable practices by British tabloids, including the infamous Rupert Murdoch phone hacking scandals, which triggered the inquiry.

Hundreds of witnesses testified over several months to help provide evidence. The tabloids’ invasive measures have been admonished by politicians and other press outlets as violations of privacy. The head of the inquiry has put it to the politicians to decide how to regulate the press – already, there has been outcry from media and government, including Prime Minister David Cameron, who voiced his wariness “of any legislation that has the potential to infringe free speech and the free press.”

Should government statutes regulate the press, or should any ‘policing’ be instituted voluntarily by the media? How far is too far when it comes to privacy -- what sorts of practices are too invasive? Is there a difference between exposing crimes and exposing fodder for gossip? How would the American press fare if there were a hacking scandal involving Hollywood tabloids?

Jose Lambiet, veteran gossip writer and columnist; Publisher, GossipExtra.com

Elephants may be banned from circuses visiting Los Angeles. Credit: Photo by Simczuk / Kasia via Flickr Creative Commons

Elephants have been iconic symbols of circuses since the traveling shows were conceived, but if Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey want to pass through Los Angeles, they may have to cross the majestic animals off their list of attractions.

The city’s Personnel and Animal Welfare Committee on Tuesday recommended a full vote by the City Council on a measure that would prohibit traveling circus elephants and the potentially harmful tools (called ‘bullhooks’) used to control them. The council will decide to fully ban pachyderms, or bullhooks, or both.

The recommendation follows a decision from a state judge made earlier this year that banned the use of bullhooks at the Los Angeles Zoo and a federal bill, proposed a year ago, that would have severely limited the transportation of lions, tigers and elephants around the county.

Is circuses’ treatment of performing elephants and other animals abusive and cruel?  Is there a way to protect circus elephants without completely banning them from LA?

Paul Koretz, Los Angeles City Councilman representing District 5 in West Los Angeles and head of the Personnel and Animal Welfare Committee

Stephen Payne, vice president of corporate communications for Feld Entertainment, which owns Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus

The new BMW i8 Spyder.

SoCal car enthusiasts and press from around the world are converging on the Convention Center this week for the 2012 LA Auto Show.  It’ll be jam packed with the latest tech gadgets for consumer vehicles, as well as concept and green cars that are years away from assembly lines.  

Visitors get a chance to climb into the newest models of popular production models, like Toyota’s best selling RAV-4, which has been redesigned for 2013, the first change in seven years.  Or that 2014 Porsche Cayman that you’ll never really afford, but is still fun to dream about. Toss in a sweep of diesel Audis, plug-in hybrids, and a new New Beetle convertible.

Just when you thought it was only the new stuff attracting all the attention, Lincoln’s display on press day is a throwback to Detroit in its heyday, with classic vehicles from the 1920s up to 1961. The car extravaganza is open to the public November 30 through December 9, 2012.

Matt DeBord, KPCC Reporter; writes the DeBord Report KPCC.org

Ed Loh, Editor in Chief of Motor Trend Magazine

Ken Burns and Raymond Santana attend "The Central Park Five" New York Special Screening at Dolby 88 Theater on October 2, 2012 in New York City. Credit: Jason Kempin/Getty Images

 It’s a documentary that blends New York history, sociology, true crime and a plea for redemption. “The Central Park Five” centers on the lives of five black and Latino Americans– teenagers at the time – who were charged and convicted with the brutal rape of a Manhattan woman. The case gripped the nation for a long time starting in April 1989. New York was thick with crime.

The teenagers were caught up with raucous behavior. And the city demanded justice. Based on a book by Burns’daughter, Sarah Burns, we see the confessions offered by the five teens and the domino effect created by those videotaped confessions. The film is being criticized as propaganda and a simple mouthpiece for the former defendants seeking compensation for their wrongful convictions.

What does Burns say to that? Did this famous case change anything about NYC law & order?

"The Central Park Five" trailer:

Ken Burns, Co-Director, Co-Producer, Co-Writer, "The Central Park Five;" Some of Burns’ other renowned documentaries include, The Dust Bowl (recently on PBS), The Civil War series, Baseball, The National Parks and many more; “The Central Park Five” was produced, written, and directed by Ken Burns, David McMahon & Sarah Burns

Raymond Santana, wrongfully convicted in the infamous Central Park Jogger rape that occurred in 1989

Egyptian protesters wave their national flag as they shout political slogans against President Mohamed Morsi's decree granting himself broad powers during a demonstration in Cairo's Tahrir Square. Credit: GIANLUIGI GUERCIA/AFP/Getty Images

The Egyptian revolution was a historic monumental event that explicitly illustrated the utter severity of the Arab Spring, but has Egypt replaced one dictator with another? That is the question looming on the minds of citizens and the international community alike after President Mohamed Morsi last week issued a decree that disallowed court challenges to his decisions. Moreover, the Islamist-dominated constitutional assembly rushed to pass a draft of the new Egyptian constitution today before the nation’s highest court could dissolve the assembly.

The proposed constitution states that Egypt will be governed by the “principles” of Islamic law, which is the same wording in the charter overseen by former president Hosni Mubarak. Liberal critics and non-Muslims argue that the language in certain articles of the draft could allow conservative Islamists to impose a strict paradigm of the Islamist sharia law. In a television interview broadcast hours before the proposed constitution was approved, Morsi said his decree “will end as soon as the people vote on a constitution. There is no place for dictatorship.” Still, protesters unhappy with Morsi continue to express their disappointment in their government’s new regime.

Are the interests of secularists, women, and others being ignored and alienated in the approved draft? How long will it take for Egypt to establish a charter that is generally accepted by both Muslims and non-Muslims?

Kristen Chick, Cairo correspondent for The Christian Science Monitor

People drive their cars through deep water in Los Angeles, California, on December 22, 2010. Downtown Los Angeles received one-third of its annual average rainfall in less than a week. As of midmorning yesterday, the rain gauge at the University of Southern California campus recorded 5.77 inches. Credit: GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images

Showers are forecast through the weekend, just as the holiday party season is kicking off.  And if the accident numbers are any indication, the old cliché that L.A. drivers can’t handle the rain holds true. According to California Highway Patrol, there were three times as many auto accidents yesterday as there were a week earlier. Why the drastic difference? Stormy weather.

All the normal rules of bad driving apply of course - driving too fast, switching lanes without signaling and focusing on iPhones instead of the road. When you add slicked-out streets and limited visibility, it’s a recipe for Carmageddon. We can’t just stay home when it rains, so how do you avoid becoming a cliché - or an accident statistic?

Patrick Chandler, public information officer, Caltrans

Bob Sodervick waves a gay pride flag outside of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, California. Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

After sweeping victories for marriage equality in the November 2012 election, the Supreme Court is deciding today whether to take up a case that could be a landmark decision for LGBTQ rights.

The court will discuss the Defense of Marriage Act, which denies federal recognition to same-sex marriages, and a possible review of California’s Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage in the state. Massachusetts and New York, both states that recognize same-sex marriage, struck down DOMA; Prop 8 was overturned by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

These state-level wins are significant, but a Supreme Court decision on either case would have a much broader impact on marriage equality nationwide. Is now the right time for a federal decision on marriage equality? How should the Supreme Court handle the cases? What will the impact of the court’s decision be? If the Supreme Court does not take up the Prop 8 appeal, will same-sex marriage be instantly legalized in California?

John Eastman, Professor of Law and Founding Director of the Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence and former Dean at Chapman University School of Law; chairman of the National Organization for Marriage

Vikram Amar, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law

(L-R) Ben Mendelsohn, Vincent Curatola, Andrew Dominik, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, and James Gandolfini attend The Cinema Society with Men's Health and DeLeon hosted screening of The Weinstein Company's "Killing Them Softly" on November 26, 2012 in New York City. Credit: Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images

Larry is joined by KPCC film critics Andy Klein and Wade Major to review the week’s new film releases including Killing Them Softly, Silent Night and more. TGI-FilmWeek!

Killing Them Softly:

Silent Night:

Wade Major, film critic for KPCC and boxoffice.com

Andy Klein, film critic for KPCC and the L.A. Times Community Papers chain

"Far From the Tree: Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity" by Andrew Solomon. Credit: Scribner

Extraordinary children often lead difficult lives when they are so different that they are unable to feel accepted by society. As they grow older, their differences tend to define them and become cornerstones of their identities. Andrew Solomon, the gay son of heterosexual parents, learned this through personal experience and has now authored a book, “Far From the Tree,” about the parent-child dynamic of different kinds of exceptional children and the prejudices they face.

In addition to telling his own story, Solomon explores and illustrates the life experiences of children with dwarfism, Down syndrome, autism, severe disabilities, and others. The author strives to expand society’s understanding of the relationship between identity and illness and its definition of the human family in order to increase tolerance. Solomon proposes that diversity brings families closer together and ultimately unites us all.

Andrew Solomon, author, Far From the Tree: Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity (Scribner)